[2] Three Under Four

Once upon a time (i.e. back in 2014), Cam and I flew from Melbourne to London with our eldest daughter, Clara. She was six months old.

It was the worst 24 hours of my life. Honestly. It was worse than being in labour. I’m pretty sure Clara screamed non-stop for 24 hours. I wailed like a lunatic with those great, big, heaving sobs that leave you unable to catch your breath.

At some point, the pilot came and spoke to me. He offered me solidarity, telling me he’d been there too. His kindness made me cry even more. At our trip’s mid-point in Dubai, Cam even tried to convince me that we should leave the airport, right then and there, and settle in this new and unfamiliar city. “We could find jobs here!” he offered.

I remember ambling towards agreement at the time. This was Cam’s way of saying he would never again board a plane with a child.

And yet, here we are: flying from Melbourne to California.

Hell, what am I saying? This flight is a mere 16 hours. It’s short in comparison to that marathon to London! This time, we’ve also got the comfort of flying business class – my first ever time, as a family (thank you, Future Employer of Cam).

The catch? This time, we have two additional children.

Here are the questions catapulting through my head:

▪ How will two of us cope with juggling three children aged one, two, and three?
▪ How do we endure that while carrying about 10 suitcases, a portacot, and a pram?
▪ How will our fellow passengers manage this whopping, no holds barred assault on their once-peaceful business class fare?
▪ Remind me again why we’re doing this?

I’ve packed the girls’ suitcases full of goodies. There’s stickers, play dough, crayons, iPads, water pens, an etch-a-sketch, and more. Sufficient? Maybe.

I’ve also packed Phenergan.

clare x 1

 

21 thoughts on “[2] Three Under Four”

  2. Zoe says:
    Reply

    He he… that good friend phenergen 😜 That also got a workout on our flight here too… loving the blog… looking forward to figuring out the weird American-isims together!

    Like

  4. Alexis says:
    Reply

    LOVE this Clare, will and I would say our trip to Bali with two 6 month olds was torture (including the plane) so we are yet to have a family holiday away on a plane. Actually or anywhere 😂 poor kids haha

    Like

    • Clare says:
      Reply

      I know the feeling! Hence we haven’t taken a trip since Clara was 6 months old (3+ years ago) – if we weren’t relocating to move somewhere I don’t think we’d ever fly again!! xxx

      Like

  6. Claudine says:
    Reply

    Wonderful writing by one of my favourite inspirations! I don’t know how you managed the journey and I’m looking forward to reading about it.

    Much love xxx

    Like

  9. Pingback: [3] Making Choices – Big Little Lives
  10. Pingback: [9] Love Letter – Big Little Lives
  11. Pingback: [27] Kids – Big Little Lives

Leave a comment